Oppo steps up retail expansion in Southeast Asia to close sales gap on rival Samsung
- Major Chinese smartphone players are sharpening their focus in the region amid the continued sales decline in China
Oppo, the world’s fifth largest smartphone vendor, is accelerating the expansion of its retail network in Southeast Asia, where the Chinese company is poised to overtake regional market leader Samsung Electronics.
Dongguan-based Oppo on Friday launched its first flagship store in the region in Bangkok, capital of Thailand, according to Jimmy Yi, president of Oppo Asia-Pacific. More flagship stores are expected to open in Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines next year.
“Since entering Thailand as our first international market in 2008, we have built our success from partnering with local carriers and electronic retail chains,” said Yi in an email interview on Thursday ahead of the opening of the company’s Bangkok flagship store.
He said Oppo’s retail expansion in Southeast Asia, where it is hiring more than 40,000 sales staff, is part of efforts to establish a competitive product portfolio and develop specific customer service programmes for each market in the region, which comprise 11 countries with a combined population of more than 663 million.
That initiative shows how the major Chinese smartphone players are sharpening their focus outside China amid the continued sales decline in the world’s largest mobile phone market, where the domestic economy is feeling the effects of a protracted trade war with the United States.